Nine To Noon

09:05 Dunedin's homeless and rough sleepers erect growing tent encampment

A growing 'tent encampment' in Dunedin City was entirely predictable, say groups working with rough sleepers, as concerns grow for their welfare in winter. Charities working with the homeless say there are between 11 and 22 tents set up at the Kensington Oval, a large open sports field. Even more are living in vans and cars on nearby park land and in surrounding bushes next to the urban motorway. David McKenzie runs the Dunedin Night Shelter. He says they saw the situation coming last year, when a major boarding house closed down, and backpackers lodges turned back to the tourist market, post-Covid. He says homelessness is a growing problem in the southern city, which is heading into another cold winter. David McKenzie, Dunedin Bedding Bank's volunteer Janine Walker and Dunedin mayor Jules Radich speak with Kathryn Ryan.

09:25 Wellington's Thorndon Quay business owners fear road upgrade woes far from over

Business owners on a Wellington road undergoing a multi-million dollar upgrade, fear it may need to be ripped up again if water leaks persist. Thorndon Quay has faced months of disruption as $54.8m of bus lanes and cycleways are installed. But Wellington Water has accidentally released a draft memo from 2022, suggesting a stretch of pipework under the road should have been fixed at the same time. The report says a stretch of three waters pipes needs $5.2m of "must do" maintenance. That work is not being done as part of the current upgrade. Paul Robinson, who owns The Woolshed on Thorndon Quay, received the memo under an Official Information Act request. He has been raising the alarm of ongoing water issues with Wellington City Council, since late last year. Also Siobhan Procter is the chief infrastructure officer at Wellington City Council

09:45 UK: Belfast judge deals Rwanda plan blow, rainbow lanyards out

UK correspondent Matthew Parris joins Kathryn to talk about a ruling from a Belfast judge that the plan to deport illegal migrants to Rwanda wouldn't apply in the province. Government minister Esther McVey has taken aim at civil servants, saying they should be banned from wearing rainbow lanyards - is this a new battle in the culture war? The shipyard that built the Titanic and is contracted to build Royal Navy ships could be shuttered in Belfast, while future ships could be built in Spain. And the tiny beachfront ice cream hut that's on the market for £1.5m.

10:05 Modern China told through the lives of four young women

Yuan Yang was born in Sichuan, China,  in 1990 and moved with her parents to England when she was four. She studied at Oxford University and the London School of Economics and became the Financial Times' first Europe-China correspondent. Yuan Yang was posted to Beijing for six years for the FT - during which time she became friends with four women of a similar age, born during the reform era of the 1980s and 1990,  as China moved towards capitalism.  Her new book Private Revolutions paints a portrait of modern China through the lives of these four women. Yuan Yang is back in the UK now, where she is standing for parliament in the upcoming election for the Labour party.

10:35 Book review: Ans Westra: A life in photography by Paul Moon 

David Hill reviews Ans Westra: A Life in Photography by Paul Moon published by Massey University Press

10:45 Around the motu : Jonathan Leask in Ashburton 

The cost estimates of a second Ashburton Bridge are rising. The Ashburton District Council has received 1525 submissions on its long-term plan and hearing are due to finish today. And a speed limit drop to 50 kilometres per hour in Rakaia has been welcomed by the community, but concerns remain for pedestrians trying to cross the busy stretch of State Highway 1.

Local Democracy Reporter - Mid Canterbury Jonathan Leask from the Ashburton Guardian

11:05 Tech: UK data snoop, AI PCs, solar flares and satellites

Tech commentator Bill Bennett joins Kathryn to look at revelations UK departments plan to use pupil data to check for benefit fraud and pursue parents. Bill also talks about how AI hardware is being installed in the next generation of PCs - what benefits could it bring, and could the personal computer market be rescued from the doldrums. Elon Musk's Starlink network seemed to pull through the weekend's spectacular solar storms. And a study that suggests the internet could actually be good for you...

Bill Bennett is an Auckland based technology journalist.

11:25 Parenting: Tips for when adult children move back home 

Becoming an empty nester can often mean a new lease of life and freedoms, as children leave the family home to study, travel or move into their own place. But for many New Zealanders, it may be short-lived, with increasing numbers of adult children returning to the nest. So how do you navigate life when adult children move back in? Vinessa Orsbourn is a Private Wealth & Risk Manager at ''Become' financial planners and shares some tips for making it work for everyone.
 

11:45 Screentime: Infiniti, Motherhood anthology, High Country

Film and TV correspondent Tamar Munch joins Kathryn to talk about Infiniti, a sci-fi mystery playing on the Rialto Channel, TVNZ's Motherhood anthology that looks at five short independent stories from Aotearoa and ThreeNow's High Country - a crime drama set in Victoria that stars New Zealand actress Sara Wiseman.